


Instant Coffee

by Nekhoema



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Coffee, Fluff, M/M, so much coffee
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-12
Updated: 2016-04-12
Packaged: 2018-06-01 20:13:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6534781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nekhoema/pseuds/Nekhoema
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yaku Morisuke is a disgruntled and exhausted journalist currently in a slump when it comes to his work.<br/>Lev Haiba is the new, overly enthusiastic intern that Yaku's boss Kuroo Tetsurou assigned him to train.<br/>Yaku didn't think he could hate his life more than he already does, but it looks like he was wrong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Instant Coffee

Yaku Morisuke groaned as sunlight filtered through the blinds in his small office at Nekoma News, rubbing his temples as he screws his eyes shut in displeasure. It was too early in the morning for him to be awake, and he hadn't even gotten a wink of sleep due to his unfinished report that glared at him from the jarringly bright screen of his laptop. After a moment he sat back in his chair and let out a pained grunt as his back creaked in protest to the sudden movement. His muscles were stiff and sore and his ass was numb. He opened his light brown orbs slowly to let them adjust to the offending stream of radiance coming from his window before deciding to go for a walk to grab a coffee, as his legs were in serious need of stretching and he was in serious need of caffeine.

Yaku greeted the few other people he came across on his journey to the cafeteria. They were either in the same boat as him (slowly fading into nothing from exhaustion and cursing their life choices) or just workaholics who actually LIKED being up at the ass crack of dawn. Kuroo Tetsurou, Yaku's boss and good friend, was the latter, and this fact was made abundantly clear when he began to approach Yaku's side with his trademark shit-eating grin on his face. Kenma Kozume, Kuroo's boyfriend and assistant, was next to him, his golden gaze trained firmly on his mobile phone and his fingers moving so quickly over the keys as to nearly be a blur. His ombre hair was tied back in a tiny ponytail to keep it away from his face and Yaku was distracted momentarily by how cute it looked on him. One of Kuroo's hands was rested on the small of his back, unconsciously leading his partner around obstacles in his path (a desk, a flustered receptionist, a pole).

"Ah, if it isn't my favourite and most reliable underling! How are you feeling today?" Kuroo said as soon as they'd reached Yaku's side, his tone playful, almost mocking. Yaku felt himself growing annoyed at the inquiry but on closer inspection of Kuroo's face he could see the poorly-hidden concern in the black orbs as they zeroed in on the bags under Yaku's own eyes before raking over his dishevelled appearance in its entirely.

Yaku just stared back at him, blinking slowly and not even dignifying the question with an answer. Kenma looked up briefly at the lack of response, his expression growing surprised, or as surprised as a person like Kenma could look, as he also noticed Yaku's fatigue. By now, Kuroo looked uncomfortable, but that didn't stop him from piling yet more work on Yaku's already overburdened shoulders.

"Listen, I hate to do this to you when you're already flat out, but I've just been informed that we've been assigned a new intern. He starts tomorrow but I told him to come in today so he could become acquainted with some of the staff and with the building itself."

Yaku's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he tried to process this information. "What does this have to do with me? Isn't it your job to get the newbies settled, Kuroo?"

If Kuroo had seemed uncomfortable before, he was extremely anxious now, his gaze trained firmly on a point above Yaku's head (which wasn't hard to do, in retrospect, a fact which Yaku thought of bitterly on a daily basis) and his mouth turned up at one corner in a nervous smirk.

"Ah, well, yes, that is normally my job. But unfortunately Kenma and I," he takes a moment here to place the hand that had been on Kenma's back up on his head instead, applying light pressure as Kenma grumbles something about unnecessary touching, "have been called away to Fukurodani to help Bokuto get his shit together, as Akaashi is currently ill and the place is falling apart without him."

Yaku would never understand why two rival companies would go out of their way to help each other out when they were struggling, but he had stopped questioning the strange relationship between Kuroo and Bokuto long ago, so he shrugs this information off.

"I'm still not seeing what this has to do with me."

Kuroo took a deep breath, placing a hand on Yaku's shoulder. Yaku stared at it like it had personally offended him as he waited for Kuroo to explain what his particular role was in all of this.

"I need you to train the newbie."

 

~~~~

It was worse than anything Yaku could have imagined.

Lev Haiba had been everything Yaku despises in a person. Loud, extraordinarily forward, tactless and TALL. So tall. Seriously. The kid must have cleared nearly two meters. Yaku had heard a few rumors that Lev was apparently half Russian, which may explain his abnormal height but definitely not his overly boisterous attitude to everything, 'Yaku-san' included. By the end of the day Yaku had been on the verge of strangling him. Lev had followed him around like a lost puppy, asking so many questions it made Yaku's head spin and commenting on his own short stature multiple times, even after Yaku had hissed a warning through his teeth about it.

It was Yaku's second all nighter in a row and he'd only just managed to shake Lev off his tail at around 7 PM with a firm command of "go home before I send you there in an ambulance." It was now around 11 at night and Yaku's brain felt like it was leaking out of his orifices. He was so, so tired. He had managed to get his morning coffee courtesy of Kuroo (the man had delivered it to him with a disgusting grin, placing a hand on his chest at Yaku's grumbled thanks and saying belatedly, "I'm always this kind!") before the raven had darted off to help his 'bro' (as he affectionately referred to him) get the Fukurodani situation under control.

He sighed, in terrible need of yet another hit of caffeine as he rubbed his temples. He could feel a headache coming on and he knew without checking that he'd already exhausted his supply of pain medication he kept in his desk drawer next to his notepad and stock of pens. He stared angrily at the white screen of his laptop in front of him. He still hadn't made any progress on his report. Something was missing from his story, something that would grab the attention of the reader and make it memorable. Normally he had no problem capturing people and events in writing, but something about this particular case is eluding him.

After another ten minutes of struggle, he gives up and makes the decision to grab a coffee at the 24/7 cafe and bookstore down the road. He makes it almost to the entrance of the building before there is a sudden blur of motion and Yaku is knocked to the floor by something solid. He vaguely hears a pained hiss but it might have been his imagination.

It takes him a few moments to even process what had occured, and by that time his head is pounding. He begins to sit up slowly, his eyes searching for the offending force that had barrelled into him. When he registers what it is his blood freezes in his veins and he sees red.

Lev Haiba is sprawled on the cool tiles in front of him, his long gangly limbs spread out and his grey hair askew. Yaku watches, shaking with anger, as the intern slowly sits up and he blinks in surprise, before his eyes focus in on Yaku, widening almost comically as they register his annoyance.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry Yaku-san! Are you okay? It didn't splash on you, did it?" By this point he'd already crawled to the smaller man's side and was checking him over desperately for injuries.

Yaku was about to snap at him before he registered the last portion to Lev's barrage of questions. "Did what splash on me?" He muttered.

Lev's expression showed confusion, but it quickly morphed into relief as he realised Yaku was (mostly) unharmed. "Ah, that's good. You're okay. I was really worried I'd hurt you, Yaku-san." His green, cat-like eyes gleamed intensely in the soft lighting of Nekoma's entrance, and for some unknowable reason it made Yaku's heart stutter for a moment in his chest. As he prepared himself to clamber to his feet, he suddenly realised that there was an empty paper cup on the floor, some brown liquid leaking from it, and he noticed that the front of Lev's white shirt was stained with the same wetness.

Lev followed his distracted gaze to the discarded cup and his cheeks flushed very lightly.

Yaku ignored his discomfort. "What are you doing here, Lev? I sent you home hours ago."

Lev didn't miss a beat before answering, "And I did go home, Yaku-san. But as I was laying in bed I couldn't sleep because all I could think about was Yaku-san staying up all night working without a break and it made me want to help. I brought you a coffee!" His voice jumped about two octaves in his excitement before it fell again, realising that said coffee was now decorating his torso.

"Wait, that was hot coffee, Lev?" Yaku's gaze became slightly more panicked.

"Yes, Yaku-san!"

"You were running. With hot coffee. In the building. And that's why you crashed into me."

"Yes Yaku-san!"

"You do realise that that hot coffee is now all over you, right?"

At his words, Lev's face twisted into an expression of pain and he ripped his shirt away from his body. Or tried to. Some of it had stuck to his skin, raw and chafing, and he let out a pitiful whimper.

"That's what I thought."

Yaku huffed a deep sigh as he watched the intern's pathetic attempts at detaching himself from the fabric determined to bond with him like a second skin. Lev had hurt himself trying to do a favour for Yaku, so the least he could do was help the kid out in turn, even if he was infuriating.

"Come with me, you bumbling idiot. We need to get that off you and treat your burns before they blister, if they haven't already."

~~~~

Five minutes later Yaku had Lev sitting up on a counter in the employee bathroom, his expression blank as he instructs the giant to strip off his shirt. Lev complies with a cheeky grin spreading across his cheeks, and Yaku feels his own heat up as the half-Russian's pale, milky skin is revealed. His body is toned but not too muscular, his limbs lean yet strong. The effect was slightly marred, however, when Yaku's eyes fall to the burns covering Lev's hip, chest and stomach regions respectively.

"How did you not realise that you'd spilled the coffee on yourself?" he muttered under his breath, but Lev heard him anyway. He was unusually quiet now, his grin replaced by a look of misery as the excitement of the situation melted away and searing agony replaced it.

"I don't know. I guess I was just more concerned about you, Yaku-san. I was worried you'd gotten burnt."

Yaku ignores this and prods Lev's torso lightly with a finger, making the grey-head flinch and hiss. "You need to take better care of yourself. Worry about yourself more in these matters, you moron!"

Lev doesn't respond, just frowns down at his shoes morosely as Yaku busies himself with running cool water over the damaged skin, which is already blistered in places as Yaku feared. He crouches down to the cupboard under the sink for a first-aid kit, and is rewarded for his efforts. Never has he been so grateful for Kuroo's weird habits of placing objects in strange locations around the building. He unwraps some gauze and begins to wind it around the boy's body, but not before slathering the entire area in Aloe Vera cream to take away the sting of the burns. Lev lets out a sign of pleasure tinted with pain as Yaku's fingers slide over his stinging flesh, and both of their faces redden when Yaku's thumb brushes over one of Lev's nipples.

"You're really good at this, Yaku-san."

"Shut up, Lev."

"Yes, Yaku-san."

~~~~

It's 4 AM and Yaku is still awake, still staring at his blank laptop screen, still trying to force his depleted brain to pull together any scraps of inspiration he can use to make words flow. The only difference now is Lev is passed out on the couch tucked at the back of Yaku's office, bandages covering him from his armpits to his hips. He'd been determined to stay awake with Yaku and keep him company (even though Yaku had vehemently told him he'd really prefer he didn't) but he'd barely lasted past 1 AM before his eyelids had drooped shut. He had curled up in a ball, presumably from the cold, his face scrunched in discomfort, and Yaku had taken pity on him. He'd searched multiple storage cupboards for something the kid could use as a blanket, eventually returning with an old, heavy curtain and draping it over Lev carelessly. Now his arms were pillowing his head and his expression had softened, becoming peaceful. Yaku had assumed Lev would be loud and obnoxious in his sleep just like he was when he was awake. He'd cringed when he'd first noticed, expecting snores, sleep-talking and movement, but in reality Lev is a quiet sleeper. He breathes softly and he's so still that Yaku had to keep checking on him to remind himself that yes, Lev was only asleep and not, in fact, dead. Each time he'd push away his concern aggressively, refusing to acknowledge the flutter in his stomach, inwardly caving in on himself as he wonders how Kuroo would react if he found out about this event. He'd definitely be teased for mothering such a giant baby, that's for sure, but Lev was the sort that needed guidance all the time or else he'd be distracted way too easily.

Still, maybe Lev wasn't so bad after all.

He was kind, sweet even, and he'd dropped everything to make sure Yaku was okay when they'd crashed into each other, not even registering his own pain because of his concern for Yaku. He was a dork, that was for sure, and it was frustrating... But Yaku found it sort of endearing as well. They'd made small talk while Lev was still awake and he'd found out a few things about the kid; the fact that he had a lot of pressure on him to succeed due to his parents both being very successful business partners being the main topic. His older sister had been groomed with the responsibility of taking over the Haiba company when they retired, so Lev himself was the only one seemingly without any talent in the family. He confessed to Yaku that a lot of the time he felt stupid, as he knew he wasn't that intelligent, and he didn't have the charisma to use charm to make up for that mishap. Yaku had felt sorrow for Lev's upbringing but Lev had assured him that his family loved and cared for him deeply, they just had some trouble showing it. He'd pepped right up when he'd spoken about his sister, his eyes shining with pride for her achievements, and Yaku had felt amusement despite himself at Lev's enthusiastic depictions of the adventures they used to get up to together.

Yaku turned back to his computer, and something in his brain clicked. His fingers flew over the keys, tapping out sentence after sentence as he began his article in earnest.

It wasn't until he finished it two hours later and Lev was beginning to stir that he realised he was smiling.


End file.
